Happy 80th birthday to baseball great and native Alabamian Willie Mays! The "Say Hey Kid" was born on this day in 1931 in Westfield. He began playing baseball when he was just 14, inspired by his father who played semi-professionally on a local steel mill team. At age 16, after playing at Fairfax Industrial High School, Mays went pro, joining the Birmingham Black Barons.

In late May 1951, the New York Giants signed the young star up. After a rough 0-for-12 starts, Mays found his rhythm and helped lead his team to the pennant, being named Rookie of the Year along the way. While Mays missed a few years of playing when he was drafted and sent overseas, he came back with a vengeance in 1954. The Giants took the World Series, and Mays made what has become known as the greatest catch in the history of baseball: Running towards the outfield, Mays caught a fly ball over his shoulder with his back to the infield, spun around and threw the ball back to keeping the Cleveland Indians from advancing. He was once asked what he felt was his "greatest catch." Mays simply said: "I don't rank 'em, I just catch 'em."

In 1961, Mays was the highest-paid performer in baseball, bringing home $85,000 a year. In fact, only three other men (at that time) had earned more than Willie--Stan Musial, Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio. But even with all his accomplishments, all his raw talent and skill, Willie was still a timid boy from Birmingham. In an interview with The Saturday Evening Post, he said that he got extremely nervous around "newspaper men" (journalists), to the point of being reduced to tears by their insistent line of questioning. The laid-back ballplayer also never took comfort in drinking or smoking, saving all his energy and focus for the game he loved--and that loved him right back.

In 1965, just two days prior to his 34th birthday, Mays hit another career milestone: his 512th homerun. (Note: Both this year and the year of "The Catch," Mays was voted National League MVP.) With this major achievement, the Alabamian broke the existing National League homerun record, cementing his place in baseball history.

View full sizeA fresh-faced 17-year-old Willie Mays grins from ear-to-ear at historic Rickwood Field while playing with the Birmingham Black Barons.